


Junebug

by Harryissuchalittleshit



Series: The Imprint Anthology [3]
Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Claire grows up but is still really naive, F/M, Family Feels, Large age gap, Quil is honest about his age, family troubles, found family becomes REAL family, they don't do anything real until she's 18
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:41:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23589331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harryissuchalittleshit/pseuds/Harryissuchalittleshit
Summary: He waited sixteen years for her, she didn't know that anyone would ever be waiting for her.Claire has come back to La Push in hopes of bringing her family back to where they belong. In that time she meets the family that she always was supposed to grow up with. Sixteen long years have pass, sixteen long years of a life that she doesn't recognize.Sixteen years is a long time...
Relationships: Quil Ateara V/Claire Young, slightly implied Claire Young/Renesmee Cullen
Series: The Imprint Anthology [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1674550
Kudos: 9





	Junebug

**Author's Note:**

> First off, I don't love the sixteen year age gap of Quil and Claire, more so, I hate it when people write Quil as sex crazed for when Claire turns sixteen. This story starts with them having been separated for about fourteen years.
> 
> Second, I wrote Claire to be pretty naive about Quil, but sharp about other things, you'll see.
> 
> Third, I really wanted to give Claire some positive female role models, so some love for Rachel, Emily, and Leah in this story.
> 
> Also this is the only chapter, I may one day write a sequel, but as of right now this is it.

**Junebug**

_By Robert Francis_

“ _Junebug, I remember everything.  
The blue carpeted floors, _

_The tall wooden doors,  
I held you in my arms.   
Junebug, I’d burn down a picture of a house,   
Say it was ours, _

_When we didn't need it anymore.  
And that was when I loved you best.   
We were kids then.   
We shouldn’t think about the rest._

  
_Ooh ooh ooh...  
_   
_You’d put the moon in a basket on your bike front by the coast.  
The way your face lit up in pale grief you were a ghost.  
You liked to play with darkness, all the universe could give.  
I was the home you once tried to escape, the dark in which you lived.  
And soon they’d find you laying there on several different homes. _

_They’d find you laying on their porches,  
Did you need to use the phone?  
And lure you into their rooms,  
That was the last I heard of June.  
That was love I could not allow…”   
  
_

Claire stared out the taxi window, sitting beside her was all of her most worldly possessions, which wasn’t saying much. She had a few changes of clothes, some jewelry, and her sketchbook. There was a small photo album filled with pictures of her siblings and family and the life they had before they moved away from everything she had known. The only other thing she had was her favorite stuffed wolf, Q, which she had as long as she could remember.

“This is it,” said the Uber driver, Mike, as he pulled up in front of a gray house with a large front porch. Claire nodded, and pulled out a few crumpled bills, handing them to him.

“Thank you,” said Claire, grabbing her things and climbing out of the backseat of the car.

Claire walked up to the large front porch, her bags slung over one shoulder. She felt nervous, she honestly had no idea where she was, or who she would find on the other side of the door.

She set down her bags on the porch and tried to get the courage to knock on the door.

She had the courage to go behind her mother’s back and change her plane ticket. Had the courage to leave all of her plans behind. She had the courage to make the change.

“Hey!” called a voice behind her and Claire turned to see a couple walking towards her, a kid about her youngest siblings, Natalie and Jason’s age, walked between them. “Do you need a hand?”

“Paul,” said the woman with a sigh as she walked up the steps of the porch. “That’s no way to talk to anyone.”

Claire smiled, she sounded just like Claire’s older sister Ali. “It’s okay, I’m not one hundred percent sure that I’m at the right address.”

“Well this is Emily and Sam’s house,” said the man, Paul, as he put a hand on the door handle. “Are you looking for either of them?”

Claire nodded and Paul smiled, throwing open the door. She bent down and picked up her bags, walking inside with the others following after her. The kitchen seemed to make up the front of the house, with a large table in the middle of the room, where several kids were sitting and doing their homework.

She took a few steps in, feeling the eyes on her as she inched farther into the room. Claire suddenly felt even more nervous, this wasn’t right, she should’ve called or knocked on the door herself.

“Who are you?” asked one of the kids at the table and Claire turned to look at her. She was a pretty girl, with large brown eyes and shiny dark hair. She looked a bit like Natalie and Claire felt her heart skip a beat, she missed her siblings.

“I’m Claire,” she told her, “Claire Young.”

It was quiet enough to hear a pin drop, and Claire suddenly felt even more nervous. No one knew her or remembered her, she wasn’t supposed to be here anyways.

“Helen’s daughter?” asked the woman, and Claire nodded, even if the sound of her mother’s name made her skin want to crawl. “Welcome home then.”

Claire smiled and the nervousness that took over her suddenly disappeared.

~`~

Love is coming back.

Showing up where you may not belong, or where you always belonged. It’s remembering and forgetting all at once. It’s coming home and feeling lost at the same time.

Coming back, going home, reappearing back in a life you couldn’t remember.

~`~

“It’s not ideal,” said Aunt Emily as she walked upstairs into a small attic, “but it’s a bed and I’ll get Sam and some of the guys to help clear it out tomorrow.”

Claire looked at the room, it was small, with a large window at the other end and a small bed in one corner. Once the boxes were moved out, there would be more than enough room for her.

“Thank you,” said Claire, because she honestly couldn’t remember the last time she had a room to herself. She shared with Ali until she moved out, then Natalie moved into her room. “I’ve never had a room to myself.”

Emily turned to look at Claire, and Claire leaned over and hugged her. Emily wrapped her arms around her and held her tightly, it was different than any hug her mother had given her, this was warm and perfect.

Claire sat down on the small bed and stared out the window, already she could see herself getting a chair or desk up here and setting it up by the window. It would be the perfect vantage point for sketching.

She got changed into her pajamas and braided her hair back, before climbing into bed. She didn’t realize how tired she was until she put her head on her pillow.

~`~

Love is familiarity.

A hand on her shoulder, brushing her hair back. A kiss on her forehead, a hand holding hers. A hug, an arm around her waist.

It’s all warm and soft and familiar. It’s sweet and kind and home.

Home is familiarity, familiarity is love.

~`~

Claire stared at the vehicle, it was old and covered in rust and had a large scratch along one side as if someone had keyed it. She loved it, it had a personality to it that she liked and definitely there was a story to it.

“I know it’s not the prettiest,” said Rachel, the woman that she had met the day she came back to La Push. “But it’ll get you around town and down to Forks, though I won’t trust it much longer than that.”

Claire nodded and smiled at Rachel, who frowned.

“You don’t like it,” said Rachel crossing her arms.

“I love it actually,” said Claire, patting the hood of the car. “It has personality and it might have a few dents and scratches, but that’s part of the charm, right?”

Rachel smiled and nodded, and Claire took the keys that she handed her. “If you have any problems, then go to Jacob’s garage, Jacob already knows and if Quil or Embry give you trouble have them call me.”

“Quil, Embry?” asked Claire, raising an eyebrow to Rachel. “Are those local names or family names?”

“Quil is the fifth in his family with that name, but yes, they’re both local names,” said Rachel and Claire nodded. “They’re nice guys, a bit funny but you’ll get along with them I’m sure.”

“Fingers crossed though that the car doesn’t break down,” said Claire and Rachel smiled again. “I’d rather not have to bug anyone.”

“Don’t worry about it, they owe me and you’re new in town,” said Rachel as a pair of arms wrapped around her waist. Rachel put her hand on her youngest daughter’s head, Billie popped out from behind Rachel and smiled up at Claire.

“Hey Billie,” said Claire, smiling down at the younger girl, Billie reminded Claire of her younger sister Natalie. They were both singers, though Natalie was a year older than Billie. “How was school?”

“Horrible,” said Billie with a loud and very dramatic sigh. “I hate school.”

Claire snorted, quickly covering her mouth with her hand which caused both Rachel and Billie to start laughing. Claire felt herself blush and walked around to the driver’s side door.

“Thank you for the car Rachel,” said Claire as she climbed into the car, it started up immediately and she drove off, back to Aunt Emily’s house.

~`~

Love is light.

Shining bright, the sun high above and clear, the lights overhead and slowly dimming. Light shining, illuminating and bright. It’s the way it shines on bronze skin, beautiful and soft and perfect.

It’s the light in his eyes, making them soft and warm and lighter than they already were. It makes his skin warm and she can’t help but touch him.

The light makes everything clear, it throws everything into perspective.

~`~

Claire turned the key in the ignition again, then sighed as nothing happened. She had hoped that it was just a fluke, but it looked like she was walking the way home. She climbed out of her car and headed to the road, at least her car had decided to die in the school parking lot. Emily had given her a quick tour of the town and had also pooled together some clothes to supplement her wardrobe.

She started walking down the road and back to Emily’s house. It wouldn’t take that long, but it was raining and cold and she could feel her shoes getting soaked through already.

“Hey!” called a voice behind her, and Claire turned her head to see a guy in a pickup truck coming down the road behind her. “Do you need a ride?”

Claire stopped walking as the truck stopped beside her. “I’m almost home, my car broke down but it’s okay.”

“I can fix your car,” he said, and Claire looked at him, he seemed genuine about it.

“Okay,” said Claire, going around to the other side of the truck. She climbed into the cab and took her hood off, turning the man in the driver’s seat. “It’s back at the high school.”

He turned and smiled at her, and Claire felt her heart skip a beat. He was beautiful, and she could feel her pulse racing. He drove with one hand on the wheel and the other out the open window.

He was stocky with broad shoulders and a thin waist. His hair was cut short, but she could see a slight curl to it. His eyes were so dark, that they could pass off as black, but Claire could see that they were just a dark, dark brown.

“I’m Quil by the way,” he said with a large smile, his teeth were bright white in contrast to his olive skin. He was the same shade as Claire and there was a comfort in it. “Quil Ateara.”

“Oh,” said Claire as they pulled into the school parking lot. “Rachel mentioned you the other day, you work at Jacob’s shop!”

“And you must be Claire then,” said Quil as he stopped in front of her car. “I’m a partner at the garage. So I might actually know what I’m doing.”

Claire smiled at Quil as he jumped out of the truck and went over to her car. Claire climbed out of the truck and unlocked the car so he could pop the hood and get to work. She really didn’t know anything about cars, so watching Quil work was fascinating.

He had very big hands with short but thin fingers, after a few minutes of work, they were covered in grease, and they reminded Claire of her own charcoal covered hands. The rest of him was very clean and tidy, even his white shirt was spotless.

“You should be all set now,” said Quil as he closed the hood and Claire got back into her car. After a turn of her key, the car started up and Claire smiled in victory.

She rolled down her window as Quil went back to his truck, “thank you!” she called to him as he opened the door to his truck. “I appreciate it!”

Quil nodded and smiled at her, it was a thousand watt smile that warmed her heart. He couldn’t be much older than her, maybe twenty-two, twenty-three at the oldest. She cleared her head as he drove off and followed him out of the parking lot, turning in the opposite direction as him.

~`~

Love is memories.

Memories of home, memories of family, of friends, of times spent with the people you loved. It’s a time that feels warm and happy and safe. She can’t remember the last time she felt really safe or secure.

Memories of her parents being happy together, memories of her siblings getting along, and memories of La Push, her one true home. La Push is the home she can’t remember.

~`~

Claire sat on the porch and watched as Quil played soccer with the kids and a few of the dads. She had been invited to join, but she liked to watch them play more than play with them. There was something about watching them play, watching the kids run around attempting to kick the ball in the direction of the goals. It made her miss her siblings.

Behind her, back in the house, Emily and Rachel and few of the other moms were all making a mountain of food. She had been invited to join them also, but Claire could barely boil a pot of water without burning it.

Claire smiled as Henry, the Fuller’s youngest son, came and climbed into her lap. He was three, and all smiles and giggles and fun, he was the youngest of seven and a good kid, never any trouble to Claire. She was starting to become the favorite babysitter of all of Emily and Sam’s friends.

“Hey there,” said Quil, coming to sit down beside her and taking Henry from her lap and onto his own. “How’s it going?”

Claire turned to him, he had that thousand watt smile again; something that still warmed her heart. He was such a sweet guy, and a big goofball. Every time she saw him he was smiling, he always seemed to be halfway through telling a joke or was laughing at one of his own jokes.

“Good,” said Claire, holding up the book sitting beside her. “And the car hasn’t broke down in a while.”

Quil nodded as Henry started climbing up onto his shoulder. “That’s better than I expected for that piece of-“

“Quil!” said Claire, cutting him off as he laughed at her outburst.

“Claire,” he said softly, as he put Henry on his shoulders. “I’m just telling the truth. That car needs be put out of its misery.”

Claire shook her head and smiled as she elbowed him in the side. She felt him lean into her side as she looked over at Hannah and Chris and Max and James all chasing after one another. The soccer game seemed to be forgotten as all the men were standing in a circle together with all the kids kicking the ball around.

“What do you think their talking about?” whispered Claire as she leaned back over.

“Tribe stuff,” whispered Quil and Claire rolled her eyes.

“Okay,” said Claire, trying to hold back the sarcasm, “what kind of tribe stuff?”

“Well,” said Quil as Henry climbed down off of his shoulders and ran over to his siblings. “Jake’s dad Billy is starting to get quite old, so he’s been taking over more of the Chief duties from Billy, and Sam has been an Elder since he was about twenty. And Leah and Seth are taking over more of their mom, Sue, Elder duties. I should probably be listening to what they have to say, but it’s all just boring stuff.”

“Why should you be with them? Are you an Elder too?” asked Claire, giggling at the thought of Quil being an Elder, he really couldn’t be much older than her.

“Yeah,” said Quil, a bit shyly for the first time since she met him. “My dad passed when I was a few months old and my grandfather is getting a bit on in his years.”

“I’ve noticed,” said Claire, she had taken up an after school job at Quil’s family’s store, though she didn’t know it when she applied. She mostly spent her time stocking the shelves and keeping Old Quil awake until Mrs. Ateara came to take over for him. Mrs. Ateara gave her actual jobs to do, like cleaning up the storeroom and mopping the floors and washing the windows.

She didn’t mind it, she liked doing the cleaning and the stocking and the babysitting, she was good at it. It also paid her the money to send to Ali to get her and the twins out here and away from their mother.

“You know,” said Quil softly, “he used to fall asleep on me when I would come to help out after school. Always thought he was being sly about it, as if he wasn’t snoring behind the check out.”

Claire laughed and stood up, holding her hand out to Quil who waved it off and stood up himself. He quickly walked down the steps and onto the grass, over to the circle of Tribe Elders. Claire watched him walk away before turning to walk inside the house and help Emily and the others get dinner ready.

~`~

Love is friendship.

It’s the act of making friends, the act of conversations and stories, the act of smiles and laughs and sharing. It’s all sharing, and playful glances, and a bit of flirting. She’s all for the flirting and the playful glances and sharing bits and pieces of their lives.

He has a lot of stories and so does she, but they’re not the same, none of it is the same.

~`~

“We’ll be back late tonight,” said Emily, before leaning down and kissing her forehead. “But Seth is coming around in an hour to take you with them to Charlie’s.”

“Okay,” said Claire, as Emily leaned down and kissed her forehead again. Claire was starting to get used to Emily’s affection, all of the Uley’s and Lahote’s and Black’s affection that is.

“Have fun,” said Emily as she ran a hand through Claire’s hair and left, off to corral her children into the car.

Claire went back to her sketchbook, she loved drawing scenery, and luckily for her La Push was all scenery. It was so green and blue and gray, beautiful with life and color. She preferred to draw with charcoal and black pencils though, they left her hands covered in black dust, but she loved it.

She got up and headed to the door when she heard a honk from a car outside. She quickly pulled on a coat that had been a gift from Rachel and walked out the door to where not Seth and Cali’s jeep was, but Leah and Jacob’s SUV.

Claire climbed into the back seat and into the seat between Marcus and Mackenzie. She smiled as she put her seatbelt on and got settled in her seat. “Thank you for the ride,” said Claire as she looked at the back of Jacob and Leah’s heads.

“It was no problem,” said Leah, brushing off Claire’s thanks. “We live closer over here than Seth and Cali, I told them we would swing by and get you.”

Claire nodded and looked out the window, this would be the first Thanksgiving she was looking forward to celebrating. If she was back under her mother’s roof, they would’ve been spending Thanksgiving in her room eating cold turkey sandwiches on stale bread and waiting for her mother to get drunk enough to leave them alone. It would be four days of isolation.

Part of her felt like she was imposing on the Swan-Black-Clearwater Thanksgiving, and another part of her felt like it wasn’t fair that she was going to a real Thanksgiving and no one else in her family was.

She followed after the Blacks as they headed up to the small house. For a minute, Claire wondered how Jacob and Seth and all of the kids were going to fit in the house together.

“Jacob!” called a girl from the open front door. Claire only saw a flash of bright red hair, before she ran into Jacob’s arms. She pulled away from Jacob and let Max, Mackenzie, and Marcus attack her. “Hey guys!”

Claire followed her in, behind Jacob and Leah and the three kids. Upon closer inspection, Claire saw how pale she was, though she was also covered head to toe in freckles. The only comfort that Claire found, was her dark brown eyes, they reminded her of her own eyes.

“Hi,” she said, once Claire was the last one standing in the front hallway, “I’m Renesmee, but you can call me Nessie or Nessa.”

“I’m Claire, the tag along,” Claire told her as she pulled off her coat. “I’m Emily’s niece.”

“Oh,” said Renesmee with a large smile, “I’m Charlie’s granddaughter, you can put your coat into the hall closet behind you.”

Claire followed the instruction and followed behind Renesmee into the living room, where Leah was sitting on the floor with a glass of wine and the kids were all watching the parade on the TV. Laying across the couch was Seth, a hand thrown over his face and snoring quietly.

Standing back by a window were two other teenagers, who had to be related to Renesmee. The guy had Renesmee’s red hair and the girl shared the same face as Renesmee. They were both paler than Renesmee, and both had an air of danger around them.

“It’s so nice to have someone the same age as me,” said Renesmee, turning back to Claire and she couldn’t help but glance again at the pale teenagers by the window. “And not related to me.”

Claire nodded at that, she could understand how annoying it was to be stuck with her siblings, even though she did miss them. She looked back over at Renesmee, she was so earnest, and she seemed so genuine.

“Claire,” said Leah, patting the spot on the floor next to her, “come sit with me. Have some wine.”

Claire rolled her eyes, but she sat down beside Leah. She didn’t know Leah that well, but Max was just a few weeks older than Hannah and Mackenzie and Marcus were the same age as the oldest Fuller kid.

And Leah was always nice to her, and she was friends with her sister-in-law Rachel, who Claire adored. Leah stared at the screen while her brother slept beside her on the couch and Claire glanced at over at Renesmee who was talking with her siblings.

“Do you want another glass?” Claire asked Leah as she stood up and held out her hand for Leah’s glass.

Leah nodded and handed over her glass before Claire headed to the kitchen. Jacob was sitting at the tiny kitchen table, cutting up vegetables, while Sue and Cali stood together at the kitchen sink. Collie, the youngest of all the kids there, sat on top the counter, stirring one of the bubbling pots.

Claire went to the fridge and pulled out the bottle of white wine Leah had been drinking from and poured her another glass. She could feel a pair of eyes on her, but it wasn’t from anyone in the kitchen. When she turned around, Renesmee stood in the doorway, her hair was like a mane around her face.

There was something about her that put Claire on edge, she just couldn’t name it though.

“Nessie,” said Jacob with a large grin, “you remember Claire right? The two of you used to play together when you were little.”

Claire looked down at the glass in her hands, she had no memories of her history here. She only really remembered her parents fighting and then the move, nothing more than that.

“Yeah,” said Renesmee shooting Jacob a large smile, showing off her bright white teeth, “because I remember everything about my early childhood.”

Claire giggled and walked pass Renesmee and back into the living room. Seth was awake now, and Leah was sitting beside him on the couch, the pair of them laughing at the TV. Claire handed Leah her wine glass and headed back to the kitchen, only to get intercepted by Renesmee.

“Can I show you something?” she whispered as she dropped Claire’s arm. Without an answer though, she started walking upstairs, Claire followed up after her. She honestly had no idea what this was about.

On the landing, Renesmee opened one of two bedroom doors and led Claire inside. Claire felt her breath get taken away, inside the room, the walls were covered in some of the most beautiful portraits she had ever seen. Quite a few of them, were of the kids, Max and Hannah and Henry and Billie, while some were of Jacob and Leah or Rose and Brady Fuller, and some, Claire was sure were Renesmee’s family. She could see the boy and girl who had come with Renesmee in one of them.

“Did you-“

“I like to draw, and Seth told me that you’re also quite the artist,” said Renesmee, with what Claire was starting to think of as her trademark large smile. “I come here a few times a year to visit Charlie, and my mom is really good friends with Jacob, that’s how I know all the kids.”

Claire nodded and sat down on the bed, she wished that she had brought her sketchbook. “I like to draw scenery, mostly with charcoal and pencils.”

“I wish I could use charcoal, but my Nana Esme hates it when I use that stuff because it gets everywhere,” said Renesmee, sitting down beside Claire. “You must be really talented.”

“Well,” said Claire, looking down at her hands, she had scrubbed them earlier, but there was still black dust around her nails. “It does get everywhere, I have to keep them in a bag and Emily only lets me use them if I’m outside.”

Renesmee nodded and Claire smiled, she could feel the beginning of a friendship working here.

~`~

Love is a kiss.

It’s unexpected, it’s warm, it’s soft. It makes her head spin and she wants more. It’s an expression of love.

It makes her heart flutter, and everything goes wild. She falls over and over herself, head over heels for him.

A kiss is a start.

~`~

Claire closed her eyes and felt Quil wrap his arm tighter around her waist, they weren’t supposed to do this. She was seventeen, he was older than that, she was jailbait, she could get him in big trouble.

“We shouldn’t,” mumbled Quil, as he put a hand on her shoulder and pushed her away, a little too forceful. “We can’t do this Claire.”

Claire opened her eyes, his face was flushed and so was hers, but she liked it. She liked him, had since the first moment she met him. He was funny, and handsome, and always smiling. He made her forget about her family back home, he made her forget about how alone she felt at Emily’s, he made her forget about school and homework and everything that didn’t matter.

“I want to though,” whispered Claire, putting a hand over the one on her shoulder. “I like you a lot Quil.”

“I like you too, Claire,” said Quil as he slowly let go of her waist. “But we can’t do this.”

Claire ran a hand through her hair and sat back on the couch. “You’re not that much older than me, I don’t see why it matters.”

“Claire,” said Quil softly, and she rolled her eyes, this was ridiculous. “I’m thirty-one, I’m much too old for you.”

“I thought you were twenty-three,” said Claire, pulling away from him. “How did I not know you were over thirty?”

“I’d rather you thought of me as twenty-three,” mumbled Quil and Claire nodded, she wished she never mentioned his age. She was seventeen, she would be eighteen on June first.

“It doesn’t matter too much,” said Claire, surprising even herself. “I like you, I want keep this between us.”

“Everyone here knows how old I am Claire,” said Quil and Claire felt herself grow cold. “Even if I haven’t actually aged since I was twenty,”

Claire stared at him, confused. That didn’t make sense, none of it made sense.

“Quil,” she whispered, staring into his eyes, “what are you talking about?”

He didn’t answer, instead just shaking his head. Claire turned away from him, staring down at the floor. She needed to get him out of Emily’s house anyways, before the kids got home from the Fuller’s house.

“Can we wait?” she whispered, looking back up at him. His dark eyes had a magnitude of emotions that she couldn’t name, except for one.

He loved her, she could see it in his eyes, even as they moved over her face and body. He closed his eyes for a long moment, before he nodded, opening his beautiful dark eyes for her.

“Yeah,” he whispered, leaning forward and kissing her forehead. Claire knew that this was it, he wouldn’t really kiss her until her birthday, they couldn’t risk it.

~`~

Love is a broken promise.

It’s many broken things, broken glass, broken plates, broken laughter. It’s a combination of lies and deceit and promises. It’s a lie between two, between two and the rest of the world.

She likes to think that she’s headstrong and stubborn and in love. Part of her knows this isn’t true, except for the love part. She’s more like broken glass, rough and sharp and smooth on two sides.

It’s a promise that can’t be met.

~`~

Claire has to admit that the myths, the legends, were silly; but a part of her loves them all the same. Maybe it’s Billy’s voice, soft and calm and clear, the only other noise being the crackling fire.

She never really liked to draw people, but the image of Billy across the fire, telling the stories of his people, got her itching to draw him. He doesn’t live very far from Quil, nor does he question it when she appears at his door and takes out her sketchbook.

She makes the only thing she knows how to make, spaghetti and meatballs, for dinner. She almost burns the water twice, and she also helps doing a bit of cleaning up. Billy has his hands full with his grandchildren, Sorra and Sara are the same age as her, but Claire didn’t see much of them. Raymond, their brother, was about two years younger, he was a nice kid and he seemed to take living in La Push better than any of his sisters. Rylie was ten and the same age as Billie, and she was just as stubborn as her too.

“Hey Ray,” said Claire as she slowly opened his door, a plate of spaghetti in her hands. He had been sick the last few days, and Claire was starting to feel bad for him, no one else seemed to care that he felt bad. “I brought some food.”

“It’s so hot,” whined Ray, and Claire sat on the only open spot on his bed. She set the plate down on the little side table and put a hand to his forehead.

“You’re burning up,” said Claire, pulling her hand away from his sweaty forehead. “We should go to the hospital.”

It took a bit of maneuvering, but they slowly made their way through the house and outside. She began to lead him to her car, but he pulled away when she miss-stepped.

“Watch it!” he yelled, before he started falling to the ground. He didn’t make it though, instead bursting into a large brown wolf.

Claire screamed, she screamed until her voice was hoarse and her throat dry. She screamed until the other wolves descend and took Ray away. She screamed until Sam came and picked her up and took her back home.

She screamed as the wolves took over her nightmares.

~`~

Love is a comforting hug.

Arms wrapped tight around her, fingers running through her hair, a soft kiss to her forehead. It’s all very sweet and warm and perfect. It’s what she needs, what she wants after the horror of the day before. It’s a kindness she isn’t used to.

She clings to him, holding on tightly until her heartbeat slows. She falls asleep to the sound of his breathing, to the sound of his steady heartbeat.

She doesn’t remember falling asleep, only feeling warm when she wakes up.

~`~

“So the stories were true,” whispered Claire, twisting her fingers together. Sara and Sorra and Rylie were all sitting at the table with her, they were getting the same story, same explanation.

What Claire was understanding, the little that she could understand, was that Zac and Max and Marcus and James and all of the other boys that she loved and babysat and cared about, had the same fate as Raymond. Her stomach was turning, making her feel sick.

It wasn’t fair, she wasn’t even born into this tribe, these people. She was Makah, not Quileute, wolves didn’t run in her story, in her history.

“Yes,” said Jacob, glancing at Billy and Rachel, who were standing in the corner of the kitchen. Jacob was the to-be Chief, the almost leader of the tribe but the Alpha of the pack. “It’s all true.”

“What else is true?” asked Sara, staring down at the table. “What else do we not know?”

“That’s everything I have to tell you, Sara,” said Jacob and Claire watched as Sara and Sorra rolled their eyes. “If you have any more questions, then you can ask me later. Give yourself some time to take all of this in.”

“Is Quil a wolf?” asked Claire, looking up at Jacob, then over to Rachel. She knew that if he didn’t tell her, then she would, it was how La Push worked.

“Yes, and so was Sam and Paul,” said Jacob, matching her gaze, “there’s still a few of us phasing, but with the kids getting older, we’ll be able to stop.”

Claire nodded, she wanted to curl up into a ball and fall asleep. She wanted to feel better, she wanted everything to be better and to make sense, but most of all, more than anything, she wanted Quil.

It would take her days and weeks to understand how all of it worked and how she was involved in all of it.

~`~

Love is scary.

She was always afraid of the dark and the things that live in it. She used to stay up all night and keep Ali up in the process. She would watch the shadows change and grow across the room as the moon came up.

She was scared of change, of her parents fighting, of never seeing her siblings again.

She was scared of the wolves, of them coming for her and taking her away, of the woods where they would devour her whole.

She was scared of love.

~`~

“So you’re a vampire,” said Claire, looking over at Renesmee. “Or are they lying to me about that too?”

“I’m a half-vampire,” said Renesmee, not meeting Claire’s eyes, “my mother was a human when she had me and my father has been a vampire since 1918. He changed her when she died while giving birth to me.”

“That’s quite a thing,” said Claire, as there was a loud yell from behind them. Claire turned around and saw James push Ava into one of the many tide pools around them.

“Um,” said Renesmee, also watching as Max pulled Ava out of the water. “Shouldn’t we..?”

“No,” said Claire, turning back to their tide pool. “They’re fine, don’t worry about it. I’ll give Ava a bath when we get home.”

“This wasn’t the real reason why you invited me out is it?” asked Renesmee, as she rubbed her hands together. “Not that I’m really complaining.”

“I had to get permission from Jacob to let you come out here,” said Claire, looking back over her shoulder at the kids. “He was fine with it, but he always acts weird whenever someone talks about you. I thought your parents were close to him.”

“My mom is,” said Renesmee, “he was there when I was born and he imprinted on me which stopped the Pack from killing my family.”

“Imprinted?”

“It’s like love at first sight,” explained Renesmee, turning and looking out at the sea. “But I broke it off when I was a few years old, it wasn’t fair for him or for me or my family. We needed to move on and he was in love with Leah, even if he didn’t know it yet…and she was going to give him something that I never could have.”

“Did it hurt?” asked Claire, she still didn’t understand what imprinting meant, but it sounded weird.

“I think it hurt him a bit more than me, but now he has Leah and the kids and the support of the Tribe and Pack, he’s the Alpha, I can’t take him away from that,” said Renesmee, playing with a ring on her finger.

“So I have one last dumb question,” said Claire, with a small smile. “You’re really seventeen right?”

“Technically I’m fifteen, but I look like I’m seventeen, have since I was seven,” said Renesmee, matching her smile. “It sounds weird, I know, but I aged really quickly, the whole vampire thing.”

“Crazy,” said Claire, she would never fully understand any of the supernatural craziness that seemed to follow her. “But thank you for coming out, I know it probably wasn’t fair to Charlie to pull you away for the day to help me babysit.”

Renesmee laughed, “he went fishing with Billy, and I was hoping to see you anyways while I was in town.”

“It’s nice to hang out with someone my own age,” said Claire, with a smile. “Sara and Sorra are kind of in their own world and Raymond is a bit younger than me still. Actually he’s the same age as you.”

Renesmee laughed again as Henry came over to them and climbed up into her lap. She ran a hand through his hair and held him close to her. “It’s actually kind of nice to be younger than someone but not feel younger. My family is so much older than me that I really do feel like a kid around them.”

“It’s better than always being the adult,” said Claire, suddenly missing her siblings. “I’m the reigning babysitter around here.”

“That actually sounds a lot more fun than you think,” said Renesmee as Henry wrapped his arms around her neck. “Sometimes I go to the children’s ward after school to hang out with the kids there. They always want to play and do puzzles and run around the hospital. They don’t get to be kids and I never felt like a kid.”

“I have two younger siblings,” said Claire, reaching out and running her fingers through Henry’s hair and down his back. “They’re about eleven, and their names are Natalie and Jason, but we always call them Nat and Jay. My sister Ali is trying to get custody of them and I’m saving up to get them plane tickets out here.”

“Wow,” said Renesmee, as Ava walked over to them and sat down beside Claire. She was soaking wet, but smiling. “That’s pretty crazy.”

“Yeah, it is,” said Claire, with a small smile. “We should probably get going before anyone else gets too wet.”

“Yeah,” said Renesmee, standing up with Henry in her arms. “Should we get them down for a nap or..?”

“Maybe just Henry, the rest we can take back to Emily’s,” said Claire standing up and waving her arms to get the other kids to follow after them.

~`~

Love is loud.

Screaming, yelling, loud. Its heat and passion, its push and pull. Its fighting.

She grew up with loud, with fighting and yelling and screaming. She grew up cowering under the covers of her sister’s bed, crying and trying to not make a sound. She grew up keeping her siblings quiet while their mother screamed at the walls and threw bottles.

It’s danger, hurtful, hard. It’s scary and it’s horrible. It’s hard and it’s bright and she hates the noise.

Love isn’t supposed to be loud.

~`~

“I graduate tomorrow,” said Claire as she leaned against the truck door. “I would like it if you came.”

Quil looked up at her from under the hood of her car, his eyes were dark and he wasn’t smiling. Claire felt nervous, every time his face fell and he got that dark look, she was scared that the wolf was going to come out. Ever since Raymond had phased, had changed into a wolf in front of her, she felt scared that one of the older Tribe men were going to phase again.

“I can’t Claire, Jacob is going and Embry needs to take Lacsey out of town, I need to be at the garage,” explained Quil, as he put his head back under the hood.

Claire watched his back, the muscles of his shoulders ripple and move. She felt stupid to be so attracted to him, to lust after him like she was, but she felt a pull to him that she couldn’t deny herself.

“They’re throwing us a party after,” said Claire, turning to look at herself in the side-view mirror. “Emily and Rachel are making a bunch of food and there will be games. Sara and Sorra are graduating too, so it’s supposed to be for the three of us, but they don’t seem to care about it.”

“If it’s still going on after I close up, I’ll come around,” said Quil as he straighten up and wiped his hands on his t-shirt.

Claire smiled as he took off his shirt and stuffed it in his back pocket, before he walked the small distance in between them. He cupped her cheek in one of his hands and smiled, making her heart flutter.

“Please?” whispered Claire, as he glanced around up and down the dirt road her car had died on.

“I’ll come around,” he promised, before he leaned down and kissed her. She moved her hands up to wrap them around his neck and pull him closer.

She hated how much she loved to kiss him, how warm he was with his bare chest pressed against hers, how soft his hair was under her hands. She felt his lips move along her jaw and down her neck.

“I love you,” she whispered, before putting her hands on his shoulders and pushing him away.

“Claire,” he said sadly and she watched as his eyes softened. “We can’t yet.”

“I know,” said Claire, as a sudden wave of emotion hit her. “I…I know, I just…it’s all so hard. I don’t know why I want you so badly, why I feel like this at all.”

She wiped at her eyes and looked up at him, he gently wiped away the tears with the pad of his thumb. He gave her a small smile and kissed her forehead before pulling away from her completely.

“This is new for me too Claire,” whispered Quil, before turning his back to her and closing the hood of her car. “I’m sorry if-“

“You don’t need to apologize,” said Claire, stepping forward and reaching out for him. “I’ve just been so emotional lately. With school ending and my birthday right around the corner and Ali called me the other day-”

“Really?” asked Quil as he sat on the hood of her car, Claire nodded and sat down beside him.

“They can’t move out,” Claire told him, looking down at her own black stained hands. “Not until the court gets everything in order.”

“She should just pick them up and come out here,” said Quil, and Claire looked up at him. This is what she wanted, it was what she wanted to hear, what she wanted Ali to do.

“I wish it could be that easy, but Ali wants to do it the right way,” said Claire, reaching out and taking his hand, their fingers locked together perfectly.

“It’ll be okay,” said Quil, letting go of her hand and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “I’m sure of it.”

“Yeah,” agreed Claire, resting her head on his shoulder.

~`~

Love is funny.

A joke passed between two, laughter quietly building, inside jokes, and smiles. It’s a love that she can’t help but enjoy, want more of. It’s a love that grows and builds and becomes more. Love that she wants, love that she needs.

Claire needs love, she needs to feel happy, needs to laugh. She needs the light with the heavy, needs to smile through the tears. She needs, needs, needs.

She needs his jokes, his funny stories, and his silly faces. She wants his jokes, his funny stories, and his silly faces.

It’s funny how love works.

~`~

Claire sat down beside Quil and handed him a plate of food. It was more of a large mound with some of everything, except for cake, which she had on the other plate in her hands.

“Here, you should eat something,” she told him, pulling a fork out of her shirt pocket for him.

“You didn’t make any of this, did you?” asked Quil, with a large smile as he took the fork from her.

“I was a taste tester,” Claire told him, as he started digging in. “Though I did help Sam with the grill, as it turns out, I’m good at setting things on fire.”

Quil laughed and smiled at her, before he grabbed her wrist and held up her stained hand. “How else would you make charcoal?”

Claire smiled and started eating her third piece of cake, she knew that the sugar would keep her awake all night, but she was okay with it. She would be okay if that meant she could stay awake with Quil beside her all night.

“How does it feel to officially be a high school graduate?” asked Quil, as he set his empty plate down on the table beside him. “Any different?”

“Is it weird that I don’t feel the same?” asked Claire, as she held her plate in her hands.

“Probably, but you’ve always had more on your mind,” said Quil, and he moved slightly closer to her on the bench they were sitting on. “Have you heard any more from Ali?”

“They called this morning,” Claire told him, looking down at her empty plate. “They got another court date, I wish I could go out there and help her, but I can’t afford to leave here. I can’t afford to leave here and also get them out here.”

“Are you sure?”

Claire nodded, once again feeling a sudden wave of emotion hit her. She wiped at her eyes as several of the kids ran pass with sparklers and a radio, laughing and singing.

“Yeah,” said Claire, hearing the sob caught up in her throat. “Yeah, it’s fine.”

“Do you know how much it would cost for you to go?” asked Quil as he brushed away her tears with his thumbs, bringing her back to yesterday. “I’ll give you the money.”

“No, it’s fine Quil,” she told him, pushing his hand away. “It’ll be okay, they’ll be here soon.”

“I have no issue with it Claire,” said Quil, and Claire smiled. “Let me know if things change.”

“I think I’ll feel more different when I’m finally eighteen,” said Claire, as she wiped at her eyes. She took his hand and laced they’re fingers together again, it was getting dark outside, no one would see them.

“Eighteen isn’t all it’s cracked up to be either, trust me on that one,” said Quil, and Claire nodded and smiled.

“Are you sure?” she asked, as she brought their hands up to her mouth, brushing his fingers along her lips. “Because I’m sure my eighteenth will be really good for both of us.”

Even in the dimming light, she could see Quil’s face turn red and she was sure hers was the same shade.

~`~

Love is safe.

It’s arms wrapped around her, holding her tightly to his chest. It’s smiles across a room, quiet and full of joy. It’s kisses on her forehead and cheeks and nose and lips. It’s the feeling of safety.

She needs safety. She craves safety and warmth and him.

Safety is love and safety is him.

~`~

Claire opened her eyes, she was in an unfamiliar room, in an unfamiliar house. She had never been to visit Quil, never been in his tiny little house. She rolled over, feeling his heavy arm wrapped around her waist and pull her closer into his chest.

“Go back to sleep,” he mumbled as she kissed his neck, the hickey she had put on his neck was already gone.

“Where did it go?” asked Claire sleepily, touching the smooth skin of his neck.

“I heal quickly,” whispered Quil as she tucked her face into his neck. “Don’t worry.”

Claire hitched her leg over his hip and felt his hand move from her waist and down to her ass, holding her to him. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck, she pulled her face out of his neck and started kissing him.

“You make me feel safe,” Claire told him in between kisses, it was beginning to look like the morning was going to be the same as last night.

Emily had spent the morning explaining all about imprinting and what she meant to Quil, what she was to him, what she would always be to him. She had been scared at first, but then she had to call him because her car wouldn’t start and she melted when he showed up with his toolbox to get it starting again.

She took him home and hadn’t gone back to Emily’s.

“I should’ve been there for you,” said Quil, as he pushed her hair off of her face.

“You’re here now,” said Claire, leaning forward and kissing him again. Everything about this moment was perfect, she wanted him, all of him.

“Yeah,” whispered Quil, “I am.”

~`~

Love is hope.

Hope for more, hope for love and happiness and friendship and two people to always be together. Hope is good morning kisses and good night cuddles and thinking of one another after long, long days. Hope is making dinner and fixing broken down cars and laughing together in the moments in between.

Hope is falling together and building each other up.

Hope is love.

~`~

Claire sighed as she laid back on the small bed in the second bedroom of Charlie and Sue’s house. Renesmee sat at the desk, braiding her hair in the small mirror she had set up there, or possibly Mackenzie or Collie had.

“What?” asked Renesmee, turning in her seat to look at her.

“I think I’m pregnant.”

Claire let the statement hang in the air, waiting for Renesmee to say something, anything. She didn’t know what she wanted to hear, what she wanted to do. She knew that Renesmee probably didn’t have any idea what to say.

“Have you taken a test?”

“I haven’t had a period since May,” Claire told her, as Renesmee turned around from her seat. Half of her hair was it’s usual wild curly mane, while the other half was in neat braided rows, it was a little disorienting.

“It’s almost September Claire,” said Renesmee softly, as she crossed the room and came to lay down beside Claire. She wrapped her arms around Claire and held her close.

“I know,” whispered Claire, resting her head on Renesmee’s shoulder. Not for the first time, was she happy that she had an actual friend out here, even though Renesmee spent most of the year back in New Hampshire.

“So what should we do?”

“I need to tell Quil, but I feel so stupid for doing this,” said Claire, reaching up and untangling Renesmee’s hair. “Not that I meant to get pregnant or anything like that.”

“Weren’t you planning on going to college?” asked Renesmee and Claire rolled her eyes, Renesmee had been getting on her about it the whole summer. She was never going to college, she couldn’t afford it, never mind get in. She had bigger problems to deal with, like her siblings.

“You have to stop bringing that up Ness,” Claire told her, as she sat up and rested her hands on her stomach.

“Sorry,” said Renesmee, putting her head on Claire’s legs. “I just had so much fun taking classes, I know that you would too.”

Claire nodded and rubbed her stomach, she really did have bigger problems to deal with.

~`~

Love is growth.

Change and movement and forward. It was all they were, all they needed to be.

Growth was her stomach, getting rounded and full and more. It was her body changing, growing something more, growing a baby.

It was planting the seeds of their life and their love, and it was watching them grow together.

~`~

Claire put her head in Quil’s lap, she was exhausted, working longer hours at the Tribe store and staying up late working on her art. She wanted to sell her art, wanted to make money off of the work she put into her art.

“Take a nap,” whispered Quil, running his fingers through her hair and down her back. She closed her eyes, relaxing into him.

When she woke up later, it was nosy and crowded, with Leah and Seth and all of the kids, and Renesmee who was sitting on the floor with them. Quil was standing within sight, talking to Jacob and Seth.

Claire rubbed her eyes and started to get up, pushing herself up, until Leah helped her up to her feet. It always took her a second to get her balance, with her stomach so big now.

“Hey sleepy,” said Leah, as Claire leaned into her side, she still felt disoriented, and hungry, so hungry. “Let’s get you some food.”

Leah led Claire into the kitchen and filled her up a plate before leading her back into the living room. Claire sat back down on the couch, and Leah gave her the plate, leaving her to go back into the kitchen.

Renesmee sat down beside Claire, tucking her feet under herself. “How are you feeling?”

Claire took a bite off of her plate, and put her head on Renesmee’s shoulder. “I’m fine, so tired with this one and work.”

Renesmee reached out and rubbed Claire’s stomach, just as the baby started kicking. “Any names yet? I tried to get Aunt Alice to see what you would name the baby, but she can’t see anything.”

“Quil for a boy, he’ll be the sixth, and Quinn or Quita for a girl, though that’s still up in the air,” Claire told her, before taking another bite off of her plate. “I’m actually hoping for a boy though.”

“Not going to find out?” asked Renesmee, with a small quirk of her eyebrows. “I would have to find out myself.”

“I just don’t care to know,” said Claire, patting her stomach. “Neither does Quil.”

Claire kept eating her food, she was always hungry now, always tired too. She just wanted to curl up in bed and eat and sleep until the baby was born, but she couldn’t do that, she would never be able to bring herself to do it.

“Do you want seconds?” asked Renesmee, as she took Claire’s empty plate.

“And some pie,” Claire told her, as Renesmee stood up and went to the kitchen. Quil sat down beside her the second Renesmee disappeared from sight and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

“Are you feeling okay?” he whispered, as Claire cuddled into his side.

“I’m just tired, and baby is kicking my bladder, and I’m still hungry, like always,” said Claire, looking up at him. She was sure that they would leave soon enough, Thanksgiving was all about food anyways.

“Pie?” said Renesmee, sitting down on Claire’s other side.

“Thanks,” said Claire, taking her plate. “How long are you in town for?”

“Until Sunday morning,” said Renesmee, as Claire started eating again. “Why?”

“You should come over, see the nursery,” Claire told her, smiling. “It’s almost finished, I made it into a large mural of the beach and cliffs. I think the baby will like it.”

“I’m sure the baby will like it if you do,” said Renesmee, and Claire nodded, quickly grabbing Renesmee’s hand as the baby started kicking her again.

~`~

Love is hurting.

It’s pain of an unimaginable sort, it’s heartache, it’s broken, it’s horrible. It’s the beginning and the end, it’s the jumping point, it’s the start. The start of more, of life, of one more in their two.

She hurts from childbirth, she hurts from the heartbreak of her family, she hurts from love.

Love hurts, it hurts and it takes and it gives.

It’s not supposed to hurt like this.

~`~

Claire stared at her son, she had been in labor for hours and hours. She couldn’t imagine how her mother had the four of them, let alone twins, but holding her baby made all the pain go away.

“You did amazing,” whispered Quil, from his seat beside her bed. She wanted him beside her, curled up next to her and around her. “He’s perfect.”

“He’s going to look just like you,” Claire told him, as she rubbed her thumb over her son’s forehead, playing with his curls.

“We have visitors,” said Quil, suddenly sitting up in his chair. The door opened and Claire looked up, she was expecting Emily or Rachel or even Renesmee who she called early in the morning when her water broke.

But it wasn’t any of them, it was Ali, with Nat and Jay right behind her. Claire felt all of the adrenaline of the day, giving birth to her son and holding him and feeding him, and now her siblings.

“Claire,” said Ali, coming to sit on her bed, Nat and Jay were already ahead of her, climbing onto her lap. “Really?”

She felt small, not for the first time since she had come to La Push, but with Ali’s judgement on her made her feel like a child. She was too young to have a baby, to be a mother.

But Ali knew that Claire had been a mother for a long time, as had Ali, it was clear looking at Nat and Jay who had raised them. Claire held her baby, her baby Quil, closer to herself, and looked at her older sister then younger siblings.

“I want this Ali,” Claire told her, reaching out a hand to pat Jay’s head and squeeze Nat’s shoulder. They were so big now, no longer just the little kids she left back in Nebraska.

“Okay,” said Ali, squeezing Claire’s outreached hand. “Congratulations, and to you also Quil.”

~`~

Love is weight.

Weight that you carry, that you take from place to place, that you hold and care for. It’s weight that grows and changes and becomes more. It’s the weight of a child, the weight of siblings and family, and the weight of love.

All of the weight of the world, all of the weight of her family, all of the weight of life.

It’s a weight that she enjoys.

~`~

Claire rubbed a hand over her stomach and sighed as she looked up from her canvas at Baby Quil and Quil in his wolf form. She still didn’t like him being in his wolf form around her, let alone their son, but the baby loved it.

Quil had told her to quit her job at the store and do her art full time, and Claire hadn’t argued. She got to spend her days with their son and doing what she loved. At first, she would keep Baby Quil in a sling on her chest and when he got older against her back, but when he got too old and wriggly, she decided that it was time to have another baby.

She wanted a daughter, wanted to hear another voice call her mama, have another person that depended on her.

“Mama!” called Baby Quil, and Claire looked up to see Wolf Quil holding him by his t-shirt out to her.

“Is something wrong?” asked Claire, as she took her son in her arms. Quil nodded and moved forward, pressing his wet nose to her forehead.

He ran off after that and Claire put Baby Quil down on the ground, calling for him whenever he went too far. It was only when she started to pack up everything that she noticed the small pile of rocks a few feet from her easel.

“Are these for me?” asked Claire, bending down as far as she could to pick them up.

“Pwetty mama,” said Baby Quil with a thousand watt smile, just the same as Quil’s. He was Quil’s prefect mini, from his hair to his smile to his tiny toes, the only thing they didn’t share was the eyes, their son had her light brown eyes.

“They are,” agreed Claire, picking him up and heading over to Quil’s truck.

She put him into his booster seat and finished packing up her supplies when Quil reappeared. “Claire let me get that,” he said, taking her supply bag from her.

“What happened?” asked Claire, handing over her bag and heading over to the passenger side of the truck. Quil picked her up and put her up into the seat.

He didn’t answer her until they were driving back down the road, going even slower than normal.

“I left because James had phased, it was Max and Chris and I on the wave length,” said Quil and Claire nodded, looking over at their son. Someday, their little boy could be running around as a giant wolf. “He was pretty scared about it, had scared Rachel and the girls too. We got him to calm down and took him around to Sam and Emily’s, because he wanted to see Hannah, tell her what happened.”

Claire bit her lip, it was no secret that everyone knew how Hannah and James liked each other. She had used to tease Hannah about it when they were younger.

“Well, James imprinted,” said Quil, reaching out and putting a hand on her knee. She felt her heart skip a beat as it always did whenever he touched her, held her, kissed her. “But he imprinted on Leila, not Hannah.”

“You’re kidding right?” asked Claire, looking at him, Quil let the truck go to a crawl and nodded. 

“Hannah phased after that, and I left them to deal with it,” said Quil, shaking his head and looking out the window. He started driving again, picking up speed as they headed back into town. “I needed to get back to you.”

Claire rubbed her stomach, and squeezed Quil’s hand, before lacing her fingers through his.

~`~

Love is their children.

Quil the sixth, so sweet and kind and funny, with his jokes and thousand watt smile. Cara, so smart and talented and pretty, always, always with a book in her hands. Adam, so silly and energetic and wild, their last son and their last baby.

Quil was her rock, Cara was her little girl, and Adam was her youngest, eight years younger than Cara.

Her children were her loves.

~`~

Claire sighed as Quil climbed into bed with her, she reached out for him, holding him close to her. She kissed him softly, tucking herself into his chest.

“Hey,” he whispered, when she pulled away. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her again.

“Hi,” she mumbled as she put her face into his neck. She moved her arms up to wrap them around his neck and hold him close.

She could tell already that he had a long day, it was the only reason why he had climbed into bed with her so early. “How was the baby?”

Claire looked up at him, they had gone back and forth over the last few years about having a third child. They were happy with Quil and Cara, but Claire wanted one more while Quil was happy with the two they had.

But then she sold one of her canvases to a big studio in Seattle and she had asked Quil to try for another baby. She honestly wanted to have another baby as an excuse to not have to go to Seattle and sell her artwork in person, and it worked.

She loved Adam though, he was her perfect baby. He slept through the night and hardly ever cried or screamed, and he loved to play with his older siblings. He was a cuddly baby too, he loved to be carried in the same sling that Claire had used for his siblings.

“He was good, like always,” Claire told him, and she felt him kiss her forehead.

“Good,” he mumbled and Claire looked up at him. Quil was still as beautiful now as when she first met him, even if he was starting to age with the lack of phasing. Claire had finally persuade him to stop phasing a few months after Hannah and the others phased.

“I’m really happy that we decided to have him Quil,” Claire told him, moving a hand up into his hair. “He’s such a good baby, and he looks just like you, reminds me of when Q was little.”

Quil smiled and she felt his hands move up her back, she sighed as she put her face back into his neck. Claire closed her eyes and cuddled against his chest.

“We could always have another,” whispered Quil, as he played with her hair. “If you want.”

“Do you want another?”

She waited, honestly, she did want to have another baby. She wanted more for her children than her parents gave her, and she and Quil gave their children more than her parents did. She loved her children, she loved the family they had made together, and she would always want more with Quil.

“Yes,” said Quil, putting a hand on her chin and making her look up at him. “I would love another baby.”

Claire smiled, and leaned forward, kissing him the same way she did when she was seventeen.

~`~

Love is Mari and Dannie.

Wanted more than any of the others, finally at the right time, finally when needed. They’re light and happy and sweeter than any of the others. They’re adorable and chubby and theirs, all theirs.

She does feel silly having newborns again, especially with a fourteen year old hanging around the house. She doesn’t regret them though, doesn’t regret any of them. She loves them despite the age difference.

She loves Quil despite the age difference.

~`~

“Quil,” called Claire, as he wrapped his arms around Adam’s waist. “Keep him still please!”

Q and Cara had Mari and Dannie in their arms and were sitting on either side of Quil. She had set the blanket up on the beach, the gray-blue water and the cliffs behind them. She wasn’t really one for painting, even though she had done every room in their house.

“Easier said than done!”

Claire smiled, and went back to her canvas, she was just sketching their outlines today. She would finish most of the details later, it was easier to sketch her children when they were sleeping or playing.

She was hoping to get at least a rough outline before they all got too antsy, but she could tell that Adam was halfway to a tantrum. She finished up a few quick details, before waving at Quil to let the kids go.

Adam ran right up to her, his dark curly hair in his little red face and tears in his eyes. “Mama, mama!”

Claire bent down and picked him up, holding him on her hip as she sketched. She only looked up when Quil put a hand on her back.

“Thank you,” she told him, as he leaned down and kissed her. “Sorry this one started to get cranky.”

Quil smiled and took Adam from her, holding him in his arms and rocking him. Adam cuddled up into his side and Claire smiled as she went back to her canvas.

“Mari and Dannie slept the whole time, still are, but I’m sure they’ll wake up soon and be hungry,” said Quil, and Claire sighed. “I know.”

“Why had breastfeeding been so much harder with them than any of the others?” Claire whined as she turned away from her canvas again. “Is it because there’s two of them?”

Quil smiled and Claire smiled up at him, she knew that she wasn’t going to get any more work done. Not that this portrait was going to be sold, or even leave their house. She already knew where she was going to place it, right over the mantle in their living room.

“I don’t know,” said Quil as Adam closed his eyes, he always fell asleep in Quil’s arms. All of their children fell asleep quickly in his arms, she knew it was because of the heat that his body always radiated. “Should we start packing up though?”

“Yeah, can you go grab the others?”

“Of course.”

~`~

Love is Quil.

~`~

Claire stood by the window as Quil hung up the family portrait over the mantel. He turned back to look at her, to get her approval that it was in the right spot, the right height. She nodded over her cup of tea and he smiled.

“It’s perfect Love,” she told him, and Quil walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Thank you.”

Quil leaned down and kissed her forehead, Claire sighed and cuddled into his arms. She was still amazed with how they got here, how they came to be together.

“Is it still weird to you?” asked Quil, taking a half step away from her. “All of this?”

“At first it was, but now it feels so natural,” Claire told him as they turned to look at the painting. “You waited sixteen years for me to come back to you, sixteen years of your life waiting for me.”

Quil nodded, his dark eyes bright and happy, she took his hand and held on tightly. He had waited half of his life for her, almost all of her own, but it had worked out. Even if there had been more bumps in the road than they planned, than anyone could imagine.

“It wasn’t that bad,” said Quil, pulling her into his arms. She smiled up at him as he looked down at her.

“Liar,” Claire told him, moving her hands up to cup his face in both of hers. “I love you though.”

“I love you too Junebug.”

_You were beautiful then,  
You’re just a coke jaw now.  
_   
_Ooh ooh ooh...  
_   
_I remember everything._

_I remember everything.  
I remember everything, Oh...  
_  
 _You were beautiful then._  
I’m still in too deep.   
Ooh ooh ooh….”

**Author's Note:**

> Please R&R, next up is Kim and Jared.


End file.
